What is the capability of the Australian mental health workforce to meet the needs of people with an intellectual disability and co-occurring mental ill health?

Exposure to risk and experiences of river flooding for people with disability and carers in rural Australia: a cross-sectional survey

“…While we lacked a mental health baseline prior to the flood, we included two measures specifically related to the flood and we adjusted for socio-demographic factors known to predict mental health. The literature points to people with disability72 and carers73 74 as having elevated rates of mental health disorders compared with the general population. To address this, we used validated screening tools and analysis techniques that allowed for an assessment of ongoing stress and anxiety related specifically to the flood event (as distinct from anxiety arising from other causes).…”

How do Australian mental health services use easy read to make information accessible for people with intellectual disability?

“…(staff member from Agency 2)The comments from staff about the availability of easy read resources were reflective of broader themes about the need for agency support to facilitate information access. Reflecting other recent research(Weise et al, 2017;Weise et al, 2020), many staff in mainstream mental health services did not feel confident about communicating with people with intellectual disability. Several staff participants expressed a need for increased support including, training or mentoring.…”

“…Staff in mainstream services feels underequipped and unsupported to meet the needs of people with intellectual disability (Weise et al, 2017;Weise et al, 2020). Accessible information is a vital element in seeking to address this disparity as limited access to information and opportunity for engagement continues for many people with intellectual disability (Commonwealth of Australia, 2020; Department of Developmental Disability and Neuropsychiatry, 2018).…”

Evaluation of an intellectual disability mental health core competency framework

“…This ranges from inconsistent undergraduate education of future doctors and nurses (Trollor et al , 2016a, 2018), through to a lack of training, capacity and confidence in core mental health professions including general practitioners, practice nurses, psychiatrists and psychologists (Lennox and Chaplin, 1996; Edwards et al , 2007; Lennox and Chaplin, 1995; Lennox et al , 1997; Eagleson et al , 2019; Man et al , 2017; Weise and Trollor, 2018). Other factors identified by ID mental health (IDMH) experts that contribute to poor workforce capacity in this area include a lack of dedicated IDMH positions, failure of the workforce to take responsibility for the mental health of people with ID and a tendency for professionals to be risk-averse when treating this population (Weise et al , 2020). Mental health professionals have also reported negative attitudes towards working with people with ID and views that are not conducive to their inclusion in mainstream health-care settings (Werner and Stawski, 2012).…”

“…They are 2-3 times more likely to have common mental health disorders than the general population (Cooper et al, 2007), with 57% of adults with ID under 65 years also experiencing psychiatric disability (AIHW, 2008). The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN General Assembly, 2006) and policy directives have called for equitable access to quality health-care services for people with ID (Commonwealth Government experts that contribute to poor workforce capacity in this area include a lack of dedicated IDMH positions, failure of the workforce to take responsibility for the mental health of people with ID and a tendency for professionals to be risk-averse when treating this population (Weise et al, 2020). Mental health professionals have also reported negative attitudes towards working with people with ID and views that are not conducive to their inclusion in mainstream health-care settings (Werner and Stawski, 2012).…”